Resilience
by Ezflowinspirit
Summary: Ben Mason has left the 2nd Mass in search of others like himself with the hopes of forming a bridge between the human resistance and the rebellion. However, when he stumbles into Sophia Black a niece to the leader of the new goverment in Charleston he questions the morality of asking children to fight this war.
1. Chapter 1

Hi,

I'm toying with an idea about the skitter rebellion and the importance it will have on the 2nd Mass and the war.

Also I am looking for a beta so if your interested send me a message.

As always reviews are welcome.!

~Introduction~

Sophia Black was at the mall shopping with her younger sister when it happened. The bombs had rained down from the sky like a meteor shower, leaving destruction in their path. Chaos broke out as panic consumed the public. It was shortly after the bombs ceased that they came, the Skitters. They took all the children. They took her. She could only pray that her sister had escaped alive. She had never fully understood the extent of fear that an individual could endure. It had taken over every aspect of her body; she hadn't been able to move, to scream to breath. She and the others had been tossed into a dark, poorly ventilated room, where she sat huddled in the corner shivering from fear and cold. The stench of mold, stale water and blood had muddled the air.

The screams of the other children could be heard from somewhere distant, leaving her powerless to do anything but wait for the unknown torment. She lost track of how long she and the others remained in that tiny dark room it could have been hours or days, but to her it felt like eternity. They came and dragged her and the others into what seemed to be part of an abandoned warehouse, around her kids were fighting back, screaming, and crying for help, but there was no help, no one was going to save them. In the center of the room there was a large tank fill with this red fluid, inside there were alien creatures that resembled parasites with their tentacles and glowing golden orb a crossed their back.

Sophia and the others were strapped to hard wooden stretchers their arms and legs held down with leather straps that bit into their skin. The back of her shirt was ripped open and from the peripheral of her vision she could see one of the alien parasites slither onto the back of the kid next to her. It slid up his back until it reached the nape of his next and in the next instant an ear shattering scream escaped his mouth and the parasite bite into his neck and started to worm its tentacles into his spine. She turned her head no longer able to watch and it was in that moment that she felt the weight of the parasite land on her back. It was wet and slimy and the tentacles tickled her back as they moved up her exposed skin. Tears slid down her cheeks and she truly wished to die, to end the torment and put an end to the horror that was sure to follow. That was her last thought before the siring pain started, every inch of her body felt like it was on fire and she was unable to escape the stabbing pain that accompanied the knife like tentacles worming their way into her spine.

Even the thought of those excruciating moments while she lay helpless on that table still made her spikes burn. She didn't remember a lot after that. Her own thoughts hadn't been her own, but a collection of her group. All controlled by the Skitter in charge of them. Being with the Skitters had been like belonging to a strange dysfunctional family. They knew your every need even before you your self did. In some ways she'd missed that connection. The time when she hadn't been afraid, hadn't felt the hunger, or the grief associated with the loss of her family, of her sister. She'd made the mistake once of sharing those feelings with someone and had instantly been branded a skitter lover.

She'd been unharnessed at a resistance camp near Charleston North Carolina with a group of others. They had been the first kids to survive the process. They had rescued six kids from a Skitter base to the south, but had only been able to save three. The days that followed were a blur. Initially she had been in a drug induced state similar to the harness itself, and when her thoughts began to clear the doctors ran tests, asked questions so many of which she didn't have answers for. As time progressed the two younger kids were assimilated into the society of the resistance with ease as their spikes had begun to recede. The reaction to their rescue had been overwhelming joy at the hope it brought for the other children, perhaps they could be saved. However, her spikes remained and with that brought fear, that maybe she was still connected, that she couldn't be trusted. Even though the doctors theorized that the spikes remained simply because she had been captured for a longer amount of time and the harness had fuzzed permanently with her spine.

The following year had been brutal. She'd almost died more times than she could count, and on some accounts Sophia Black was dead. The eighteen year old girly, girl no longer existed. She no longer spent time hanging out with friends, she had no friends. She was a fighter filled with hate, and rage. She vowed to never stop fighting not until the human race won this god forsaken war. But that proved to be difficult as people feared her, they feared the unknown, and being a superhuman razorback didn't put people at ease.

She'd held hope that there were others like her that would risk everything to win this war and she'd found it in the skitter rebellion. She was no longer alone other unharnessed kids were coming together to form a bridge between the human resistance and the rebellion. The tables of this war were about to change, because united they would stand.


	2. Chapter 2

So here's the first chapter. Let me know what you think.

Hal was helping to settling in the second mass at their new location Charleston North Caroline, which was serving as the new capital. The med bus had been relocated to the infirmary, where Ann and Lourdes were assisting the medical staff. The civilians were being assimilated into the community, where everyone was being assigned new sleeping quarters and daily tasks. As for Hal he was with the 2nd mass fighters restocking on ammo and other supplies needed to protect against the aliens. His dad and Captain Weaver had been summoned to a council meeting with the new leader and the heads of the fighting companies.

He was loading ammo into clips with Margret and Dai when he noticed the entire camp freeze and stare cautiously as a girl about his age with dark hair walk out of the trees with two guys flanking her. To his surprise one of them was Ben. He couldn't maintain his shock, he hadn't thought he'd seem this brother his soon. He was about to go greet his younger brother when Margret grabbed his arm, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Ben discretely shake is head as not to be noticed. The trio proceeded to walk through camp with everyone giving them a wide breath. It appeared that they were feared from the general public. Hal wondered why until he noticed the spikes glowing underneath the charcoal long-sleeved T-shirt the girl was wearing, he looked to the other boy and saw he too had once been harnesses so de-harnessed kids weren't well received here either.

* * *

Sophia walked through the perimeter of Charleston like she owned the place. The only way to not become a target was to exude confidence. She had no fake idealizations about how after this war was done that they would be accepted. She knew better. People would always fear what they didn't understand, what didn't fit into social norms. The de-harnessed kids would always be freaks; there would be no social integration for them. They would have to start fresh build their own community, where they could live in peace with their families, that is if they hadn't already been disowned.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts she was here for a purpose and now was not the time to dwell on thoughts of the future. Her focus needed to be in the here and now on the fight that was headed their way. It was her job to be the liaison for the rebellion. She could feel her two guards through the connection the harness provided and sensed Ben's apprehension about his family having made it to Charleston. She could also feel Travis's hatred of the place begin to rise to the surface. Both of the boys were on edge and she tried to send out soothing vibes through the connection, but truth be told she despised this place as much as Travis.

They had made it to the inner sanctum of the camp and were meet by a group of guards watching the entrance to the council meeting. She smiled politely and waited for them to make the first move. She'd learned the hard way that things went smoother this way. The lead guard a gruff looking man in his fifties named Harris gave a brief nod in recognition.

"You know the drill Sophia no weapons aloud in the council area."

She removed a Glock .38 from the belt of her black cargo pants and handed it over to one of the guards, she also pulled a hunting knife out of her right boot. She didn't feel the need to remove the one from her left boot. She motioned for Ben and Travis to do the same. To her it was semantics really to let the others feel like they had control because the razorbacks were unarmed. When in reality it didn't matter if they had weapons or not they were still superior in a fight.

"Are we good now Harris? Wouldn't want to be late makes for a bad impression."

He nodded and motioned for his men to open the doors and step aside. The trio stepped through with the authority they entered the camp with and took a place towards the back of the room listening to the commotion that the new arrivals were causing.

* * *

Tom Mason felt like he was hitting his head against the wall. They had travel countless miles to reach Charleston in hope of finding a place that the civilians could rest. A place where they could regroup and join a solid resistance, and they were considering not letting the 2nd mass join the fight.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but were at war. The planets at stake and you're going to turn us way, what because you don't agree with a few of the decisions we've made. We've encountered the aliens in ways that none of you could dream of. The 2nd mass has had the chance to observe the Skitters and the Overlords on a close basis. We know how to hit them and hit them hard you need fighters like us." He addressed the entire room.

"With all due respect Tom that's exactly why we need to be cautious about the 2nd Mass, we've encountered rebel groups like yours in the past and they're reckless, and put the entire capital in danger. They take chances they shouldn't and more often than not we have to send them on their way." The leader stated to the 2nd mass's second in command.

"Now we've know each other for a long time and you were one of my better pupils at university so I'm willing to let you stay here. But from what you've told me about the alien space ship I need to be certain you don't pose a threat to my people. To the Capital, so I'm going to transfer you to a different unit where I'm sure you won't pose a treat. Your sons can accompany you if you'd like." The leader stated with authority from behind his desk.

* * *

Captain Weaver was beside himself with anger as he stood with his fist clenched at his sides, his posture rigid as he took several deep breaths.

"Now, just hold on. I'm the leader of the 2nd mass and I should have a say in the men I have under my command. Tom Mason is a valuable asset in this war, and I wouldn't have anyone else as my second command Sir."

"I understand that Mason is valuable, but I have to know that he can be trusted before I let him continue to participate in a commanding position. These aliens have all sorts of mind control tricks up their sleeves and I won't be caught unaware. My decision is final if you intend to stay here you will obey my command. Mason is on probationary status and will stay there till I deem otherwise. And that's final." The leader commanded from behind his desk.

* * *

Ben Mason was cautiously assessing the situation. He'd come to learn that the razorbacks weren't well accepted into the capitals culture. They were tolerated because of the protection they offered the city, but they lived in their own encampment and supported their own living needs. He stood with his back to the wall arms folded over his chest as his dad and captain weaver argued with Arthur Manchester a former mentor of him fathers who happened to be the leader of the capital.

In the short time he'd been in the capital he'd come to the realization that the less time they spent in the city the better. It was safer for everyone involved if they kept their distance from the population at large. There were a few regular people who resided at their camp, family members to some of the de-harnessed kids but that was it.

He noticed Sophia is deep concentration to his right and he briefly wondered what she had on her mind, but decided not to probe as it irritated her that their connection was so intense. He turned his attention back to the proceedings; it seemed they had moved off of the subject of the second mass and onto Skitter Patrols.

* * *

Sophia push off the wall behind her with feline grace and approached the front of the room flanked by Ben and Travis. It slightly annoyed her, she didn't feel the need for such stringent protection, but they insisted and they wouldn't leave her side if she asked. It was ironic at one point in her life that man in the front of the room had provided a sense of security for her, when her father had died he'd stepped up and been the father figure in her life. He'd been the one to teach her all the things she knew about combat, guns, and survival. It was only too fitting that he was the one to squash her trust in humanity as well.

"Our scouts are reporting an increase in alien activity in the surrounding areas. There's some speculation that the aliens have a Beamer tower in the area and several have been spotted in the area. I have scouting units investigating the issue further. Also groups of Mech's have been congregating in the area. The rebel forces plan to take them out in small units. The razorbacks will handle the tower."

She gave her report in a matter of fact statement. She was only here as a liaison between the rebellion and the resistance. It would b suicide for a skitter to enter Charleston with a de-harnessed host. People would never tolerate that, the skitter and the kid would be terminated without question. Sophia looked directly at Arthur as she spoke.

"It would be beneficial to have more man power to maintain the perimeter."

He started back with a hard expression, eye unwavering.

"And, who am I going to assign with work directly with the rebellion. None of my men trust the Razorbacks or the Skitters. It would be anarchy to have the two work together. Our arrangement works because we don't fighter side by side. To do so would put all involved at risk and I won't jeopardize my men." He stated his tone conveying the topic was over.

Sophia boiled with anger her body instinctively taking a defensive stance as she readied herself for a match of wills.

"You Uncle would do well to remember that the only reason you're so called capital stays safe inside these borders is because of those so called razorbacks your man detest so much. If it weren't for us this city would have been taken long ago. However, with the increasing number of patrols that were encountering there's only so long we'll be able to hold off the enemy."

She took a deep breath and stared down her uncle.

"I would suggest that the 2nd Mass be added to our ranks. As it would be beneficial to have Captain Weavers Military input, along with the increased numbers."

* * *

To say Tom was surprised to see Ben here is a council meeting in Charleston would be an understatement. He hadn't thought he would be reunited with him anytime soon. He took note that the three teens in the center of the room were not well accepted in this new capital. That worried him as it appeared that they lived separate from the community, and if what the girl was saying they were on the front lines risking their lives, which the new government didn't give a second thought to.

He looked at Weaver then the girl and He nodded his head in agreement. The 2nd mass would join flight at the perimeter.

* * *

Arthur Started down his niece as he rolled over his options. He didn't like the thought of sending more people into the mist of the rebellion, but their alliance was the only thing keeping the perimeter of Charleston safe at the moment. He didn't have enough fighters under his command to protect the inner sanctum and outer perimeters. He wasn't sure how much he trusted Weaver and his men, and he had no doubt that if push came to shove Weaver's men would follow him. Maybe it would be best to keep the entire 2nd mass at arms' length until he got a better feel for them. He turned his attention to Weaver and Tom Mason.

"I've decided that for now the 2nd mass will accompany Sophia back to the perimeter. At least until we have the current alien activity under control. Tom you will go as well, but so help me god if it is even suspected that your working with the aliens I'll execute you on the spot. Alien conspirators will not be tolerated. The 2nd mass heads out tonight. Meeting Adjourned."


End file.
